Tagged: Illinois pensions

Illinois’s ballooning pension costs coupled with dwindling revenue from professional fees are what’s behind a proposed $1.2 million funding cut for the School of Pharmacy at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.

Gov. Pat Quinn proposed the cut for SIUE along with schools of pharmacy at Chicago State University and the University of Illinois at Rockford.

Updated 12:41 p.m.

Illinois is settling a federal securities-fraud charge that it misled investors about the health of its pension system.

Gov. Pat Quinn's office said Monday that the state has agreed to settle the Securities and Exchange Commission case. The SEC said in a news release that Illinois admitted no wrongdoing but has made more complete disclosures since 2009.

Reporting from Illinois Public Radio's Amanda Vinicky.

In his annual budget address today, Illinois Governor Pat Quinn laid the blame on the General Assembly for forcing him to cut spending on schools and other key state priorities. Quinn says the cost of pensions is "squeezing" Illinois' finances, to the point that he's calling for a $400 million hit to education.

(Read the full text of the governor's prepared remarks)